Veterans Service Commission gets OK to create 'Honor Fund' to help clients

The Lorain County Board of Commissioners on Wednesday approved the creation of an "Honor Fund" from the county Veterans Service Commission's budget to pay for workforce development for veterans, fund veterans memorials and parks and for other programs to support those Lorain County residents who served in the military. The fund is not a new tax, but it will be established from up to $300,000 of the 2022 VSC's budget that may be left unspent by year's end, Executive Director Jacob Smith said. The commissioners' intent is that the Honor Fund "shall be used for projects and assistance which would not in the regular course be funded by the normal operation of the Veterans Service Commission," according to the agenda for the board's weekly meeting. Lorain County was No. 2 among counties in the state in financial assistance with more than $1 million spent on helping its veterans in 2021, Smith said, and it also has been finding ways to cut costs. Smith said the VSC has returned an average of $1.5 million from its annual budget to the county's general fund at the end of every year over the last 10 years. Sometimes veterans organizations come to the VSC for help or funding, but the commission doesn't have the authority to help. And sometimes veterans approach the VSC to ask for help paying for a class or job training, he said. "By partnering with the county commissioners, the (VSC) board can make recommendations and say it's a real need in the community and we can do this," he said. The VSC can look at projects, vet them, and either recommend or not recommend them for funding through the Board of Commissioners, Smith said. Ten percent of the money set aside in the Honor Fund will be for workforce development, he said. Another focus will be on building or upkeep of veterans memorials, cemeteries or parks in Lorain County, Smith said. All three commissioners said they appreciated Smith's hard work on getting the Honor Fund set up. Commissioner Michelle Hung, a Republican, called Smith "persistent" in his advocacy for the county's veterans, while Commissioner David Moore, also a Republican, told Smith he appreciates Smith and the VSC weren't asking to increase taxes to make the Honor Fund happen. "I think this is going to be a very effective program for the county, very good for our veterans," Commissioner Matt Lundy, a Democrat, said. "We must always look for new ways to help our veterans without question for all that they've done for us, and we enjoy working with the VSC to come up with innovative ideas." Contact Dave O'Brien at (440) 329-7129 or dobrien@chroniclet.com. Follow him on Twitter @DaveOBrienCT.